One-hand backpack harness

ABSTRACT

A backpack harness wherein a pressure plate effects the encircling action of shoulder hooks and a waist belt in order to permit the fastening of a backpack to the back of an individual by using only one hand. A controlled deformation belt for use about the waist of the user of the backpack.

United States Patent Thomas ll l 3,649,921

[4 Mar. 14, 1972 [54] ONE-HAND BACKPACK HARNESS [72] Inventor: David F.Thomas, Hampton. Va.

[73] Assignee: The United States of America as represented by theNational Aeronautics and Space Administration [22] Filed: Feb. 20, I970[2|] Appl.No.: 13,266

[52] U.S. Cl. ..224/25 A Field oiSearch .224/8 R, ll, 25 A [56]References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 34,117 1/l862 McEvoy ..224/8 RFOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 431,1]9 7/1935 GreatBritain......t......................224/8 Primary Examiner-Gerald M.Forlenza Assistant Examiner-Lawrence .l. Oresky Attorney-Howard J.Osborn, Wallace J. Nelson and G, T. McCoy [57] ABSTRACT A backpackharness wherein a pressure plate effects the encircling action ofshoulder hooks and a waist belt in order to per mit the fastening of abackpack to the back of an individual by using only one hand. Acontrolled deformation belt for use about the waist of the user of fluebackpack.

6 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PAIENTEDHAR 14 I972 3, 649 921 sum 1 [1F 2INVENTOR. DAVID F. THOMAS, JR.

BY I/ 96 acaw ATTORNEYS PATENTEDHAR 14 m2 SHEEI 2 0F 2 FIG. 4

FIG. 5

FIG. 7

FIG.()

ONE-HAND BACKPACK HARNESS The invention described herein was made by anemployee of the United States Government and may be manufactured andused by or for the Government for governmental purposes without paymentof any royalties thereon or therefor.

This invention relates to a backpack harness and, more particularly, toa backpack harness capable of being attached to the individual rapidlywith one hand.

Previously known backpack harnesses have utilized a system of adjustablebelts and shoulder straps that were flexible and always required atleast two hands for the mounting or attaching of the backpack to theperson who was going to be using it. The belts and straps were fastened,in the prior art devices, to a mounting board or frame to which the loadto be carries was attached. Other backpack concepts have been known inthe prior art but these devices as indicated above either utilizedflexible straps requiring two hands or were of such a rigid constructionthat it was impossible for an individual to easily position the pack onhis back when it was in a loaded condition.

The disadvantage of these systems in a zero gravity environment, areduced gravity, or in a more normal earth gravity, is the fact that thebelts and the straps are flexible and require considerable arm movementto work into a position for grasping with the hands to buckle the strapsand locate the harness. This maneuvering of the harness in attempting toget into the harness requires considerable time and effort even in anearth gravity environment and in a reduced or zero gravity environmentwould become impossible without the availability of at least one hand tostabilize the body in an upright position. This particularly is true inthe case in which the user is encumbered by a pressure suit.

Therefore, it is an object of the instant invention to provide a quick,one-handed device for donning and doffing gear carried in a backpackarrangement.

A further object of this invention is to provide a backpack capable ofbeing attached to the carrier with one hand.

Another object of the instant invention is to provide a backpack whereinthe primary attachment portions cannot be displaced during the periodfrom dofiing to donning.

A still further object of the instant invention is to provide a backpackfor use in zero or reduced gravity in which the wearer will have onehand free at all times to assist in stabilization during the donning anddoffing process.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a controlleddeformation belt that automatically encircles a user upon properapplication of pressure for securing a backpack harness in position.

It is a still further object of the instant invention to provide a rigidharness element so mounted as to move automatically into position forcarrying the load as the backpack is positioned on the back of theintended user.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a backpack having asubstantially rigid harness with the mounting elements controlled byspring portions such that, as the potential wearer locates the pack, thesprings affix the mounting elements to encircle the body of the carriernecessary for complete support of the backpack harness and loadsupported thereby.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a backpackharness having a mounting frame on which the load is attached with apressure plate suspended from shoulder hooks and a waist belt by aspring system with a flexible belt portion capable of complete lockingof the harness to the waist of the user.

A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendantadvantages thereof will be readily apparent as the same becomes betterunderstood by reference to the following description when considered inconnection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. I is a rear elevational view of the instant invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view ofthis invention;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the invention with portions omitted for clarity;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the control deformation belt of the instantinvention;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the deformation belt shown in FIG.4;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken on lines 6 6 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken on line 7 7 of FIG. 6.

Referring now to the drawings and, more particularly, to FIGS. 1 and 2wherein the one-hand quick-donning backpack harness 10 is shown in asubstantially diagrammatic fashion. One-hand harness I0 has mountingframe 12 for support of the load to be carried by the harness.

Shoulder hooks 14 are curved and extend downwardly in elongated straightportion 16 to permit a hanging-type arrangement of mounting frame 12 byshoulder hooks 14. It is to be understood that padding, not shown, couldbe utilized on the underside of shoulder hooks 14 to prevent sharp edgesor assist in a more comfortable support of harness II) from theshoulders of the user.

Hooks 14 extend downwardly in elongated straight portion 16 and curveoutwardly from mounting frame 12 as spring portion 18 and then curvesdownwardly to extend substantially in a plane parallel to the plane ofelongated portion 16 and provide rigid fastener portion 20. Upper guide22 locates the position of shoulder hooks 14 at the commencement ofelongated straight portion 16. Lower guides 24 position elongatedstraight portion 16 near the lower section thereof adjacent to thespring portion 18.

Rigid fastener portion 20 connects with pressure plate 30 by welding orother conventional fastening means 32.

One embodiment of waistbelt 40 is comprised of a substantially rigid ormetallic portion and a flexible portion. The semirigid spring steelportion of waistbelt 40 is comprised of fastening 42 which secures thewaistbelt 40 to pressure plate 30. Forward curved portion 44 ofwaistbelt 40 curves away from pressure plate 30 toward mounting frame 12and connects with rear curved portion 46 also of spring steel and areverse curve from portion 44. As will be seen hereinafter, the reversecurve and system located as it is permits pressure on pressure plate 30to cause plate 30 to move in a direction toward mounting frame 12because of the spring configuration of portions 44 and 46. Rear curvedportions 46 connect with substantially straight side portions 48 havinginwardly curved ends 50. Flexible end 52 connects with one curvedportion 50 and receiver lock 54 is affixed to the other curved portion50. Thus, it is seen that pressure on pressure plate 30 effects amovement of the rear portion waistbelt 40 toward mounting frame 12 tocause straight portion 48 and curved portion 50 to encircle the waist ofthe user. This construction then permits the user to lock half belts 60and hooks M on his back by using one hand to connect flexible end 52 tolock 54. Guides 56 function to locate waistbelt 40 in its properposition relative to mounting frame 12 to provide for a positiveconnection between pressure plate 30, waistbelt 40 and mounting frameI2.

FIGS. 4-7 show an alternative embodiment of waistbelt 40. Asubstantially flexible belt 72 of a material such as webbing makes upthe basic belt portion and has spacers 74 Mixed thereto. Spacers 74 arerigidly attached at 76 in spaced relation along the length of belt 72.Spacers 74 are substantially U-shaped having a pair of legs 78 and outerbody crossmember 79 to provide an opening through the center of spacer74. Extending outwardly substantially parallel to con nector portion 79and the face of belt 72 are grooves 80 which extend into legs 78. It isto be noted that grooves 80 are such that they are substantially acrossfrom one another to receive spring member 88. Spring member 88 is madeof a material such as plastics or a spring metal covered with somematerial for protection. It is to be understood that spring member 88,by varying the various characteristics, can have the resiliency thereofmodified as desired for any given design criteria. It is to be notedthat spring 88 is rigidly attached to belt 72 by end spacer 90. Belt 72is rigidly affixed at 92 to some material which for example would bemounting frame 12. Thus, spring member 88 would be attached to pressureplate 30 and the force of pressure on plate 30 would force spring member88, because of its freedom to slide in spacers 74 and its fixedrelationship to belt 72 at end 90, to deflect downwardly as seen in FIG.4 and inwardly as seen in FIG. 5 to effect the encircling action bywaistbelt 40 of the body of the user of the backpack.

The embodiment 40 of the waist belt also utilizes flexible portion 52with some type of lock 54 as described hereinafter.

The concept of the alternative embodiment of waistbelt 40 is that ofutilizing a composite belt composed of a layer of flexible belting alongwhich is laid a thin plastic or metal spring element having itsdeformation controlled in the direction perpendicular to the user'sbody. As noted above the resiliency of spring member 88 can be adjustedas could the point of external fixation of the belt 72 and or springmember 88. The basic principal involved here is that of a compoundcolumn of two dissimilar materials wherein one material is completelyflexible and the other is flexible in a single plane because of itsspring characteristics. It is necessary to secure one end of theflexible belt to the spring member with a rigid connection through theend spacer and the other end externally. Spacers 74 must permit linearmotion between themselves and the spring member. Spacers 74 should beoptimally spaced dependent upon the flexibility of the belt.

OPERATION In a zero gravity situation backpack would be stored so thatan astronaut could back up to it. As the astronaut backs into position,his back would make contact with pressure plate 30. Further rearwardmovement by the astronaut would increase pressure on pressure plate 30forcing plate 30 toward mounting frame 12 to cause shoulder hooks l4 andhalf-belts or straight portions 48 to extend and rotate into positionabout the body of the astronaut. Using one hand the astronaut can thengrasp the short length of flexible belt 52, which is attached to one endof the half-belt, pull it across and fasten it as, for example, by ahook and eye arrangement with hook 54 on the end of the other half-belt60. Once the half-belts 60 are fastened in this manner harness 10 issecured to the astronaut and continues to force pressure plate 30 intomounting frame 12. A reversal of the process permits the astronaut tofree himself of the harness rapidly and easily.

The alternative embodiment of waist belt 40, as shown in FIGS. 4-7,operates similar to that of the above-described embodiment. Belt 72 isfixed to mounting frame 12 and spring member 88 is fixed to pressureplate 30. When the astronaut or user backs into pressure plate 30 thereis a change in the pressure on spring member 88 which causes a linearmotion thereof and, due to the rigid connection of spring member 88 tospacer 90 which is rigidly attached to the end of belt 72, there isdeflection of belt 72 for encircling the waist of the user andpermitting the locking through lock member 54'. It is to be understoodthat this same principle is readily applicable to shoulder books 14where it would merely be necessary to utilize belt 72 as attached at 92to mount frame 12 and include the attachment of spring member 88 topressure plate 30. Thus, upon pressure on plate 30 there would be aconsequent encircling action on both belt 72 and the modified shoulderbook 14.

In the situation in which a camper desires to utilize this type ofharness, in the normal earth gravity, and finds it inconvenient to hangbackpack 10 in a manner that it could be donned as by the astronaut, itmay still be used with no more difficulty than the usual web harnessand, in fact, would be much easier to use. In such a case the camper maypick up the harness by the shoulder hooks and hang it on his shoulders.The weight of the harness and load on mounting frame 12 which could becarried and supported by hooks 14 would then force mounting frame 12 andpressure plate 30 together thus extending half-belts 60 about thecamper's waist. One hand of the camper could then be utilized to fastenflexible belt 52 to lock portion 54 of half-belt 60. Doffing the harnessis again the reversal of the donning process.

It is to be understood that the shoulder hooks and pressure plates couldbe in one piece; various spring systems as well as variations of therigid or semirigid elements could be utilized. It is also contemplatedthat flexible belt portion 52 could be attached to the forward end ofbook 14 to permit one-hand fastening of the flexible straps to aconvenient location on the half-belts or on the uniform or suit ofthewearer. It is also contemplated that the shoulder hooks and half-beltscould be adjustable to permit one harness to be adjusted for fitting awide range of sizes of wearers.

Thus, it is seen that the instant invention provides a novel method ofsuspending a backpack harness from an individual designed to carry aload, as well as permitting that harness to be easily and accuratelymounted or attached to the user by use of only one hand. This has greatadvantage to an astronaut by permitting freedom of one hand formaintaining stability of the astronaut. Furthermore, the alternativewaist belt embodiment could have application to safety harnesses forautomobiles, aircraft and similar vehicles. This application wouldmerely require the appropriate design and implementation of thecontrolled deformation belt for installation of safety belts orharnesses that would automatically attach themselves about the driver orpassengers in an automobile without effort on the part of the driver orpassengers except to adjust a proper fit of the elements.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent bythe United States is:

l. A one-hand harness for a backpack comprising: mounting frame means;shoulder attachment means connected to said frame means; waistattachment means connected to said frame means; and pressure plate meansattached to said shoulder and waist attachment means and serving tocause said waist attachment means to encircle the waist of an individualutilizing the backpack upon the exertion of pressure against saidpressure plate means, said shoulder attachment means including a hookportion and a straight portion with said straight portion attached tosaid frame; said straight portion of said shoulder attachment meanscurving outwardly at one end to form said hook portion for mounting overthe shoulder of the user; and the other end of said shoulder attachmentmeans extending outwardly from said frame and attached to said pressureplate means.

2. The one-hand harness backpack of claim 1 wherein said waistattachment means comprises a semirigid, spring steel belt means having aflexible portion attached to one end thereof and a lock means forsecuring said flexible portion attached to the other end thereof; saidsemirigid waistbelt means attached to said mounting frame inhorizontally spaced locations at opposite sides of said mounting frame;the central portion of said semirigid waistbelt means being locatedbetween the spaced horizontal attachments thereof to said mounting frameand extending outwardly and being rigidly connected to said pressureplate means; said semirigid waistbelt means extending outwardly on eachside from the point of attachment to said mounting frame wherebypressure exerted on said pressure plate means causes said semirigidwaistbelt means to encircle the waist of the user and permit saidflexible end to be connected to said lock means by one hand of the user.

3. A one-hand harness backpack comprising: pressure plate means havingan upstanding outwardly projecting elongated shoulder hook portionattached thereto; a semirigid spring steel waistbelt connected to saidpressure plate; said waistbelt and said shoulder attachment connected toa mounting frame for support of the backpack; said waistbelt portionhaving a flexible end attached to one end thereof; and a lock memberattached to the other end of said waistbelt portion, whereby anindividual user may exert pressure on said pressure plate means toeffect the encirclement of the user by the waistbelt portion and themovement of said shoulder attachments to the user and by using one handmay connect said flexible end onto said lock.

4. A one-hand harness for the backpack of claim 3 wherein said waistattachment means comprises a flexible belt member; a plurality of spacerelements attached to one side of said flexible belt member and havingmeans for receiving a resilient member therein; and resilient springmember means mounted in said spacers, whereby the flexible belt membermay be deflected upon application of pressure to said resilient springmember.

5. The one-hand harness of claim 4 wherein said flexible belt member hasone end attached to said mounting frame; one end of said resilientspring member rigidly attached to said flexible belt member adjacent oneend thereof; and the other i l t i i

1. A one-hand harness for a backpack comprising: mounting frame means;shoulder attachment means connected to said frame means; waistattachment means connected to said frame means; and pressure plate meansattached to said shoulder and waist attachment means and serving tocause said waist attachment means to encircle the waist of an individualutilizing the backpack upon the exertion of pressure against saidpressure plate means, said shoulder attachment means including a hookportion and a straight portion with said straight portion attached tosaid frame; said straight portion of said shoulder attachment meanscurving outwardly at one end to form said hook portion for mounting overthe shoulder of the user; and the other end of said shoulder attachmentmeans extending outwardly from said frame and attached to said pressureplate means.
 2. The one-hand harness backpack of claim 1 wherein saidwaist attachment means comprises a semirigid, spring steel belt meanshaving a flexible portion attached to one end thereof and a lock meansfor securing said flexible portion attached to the other end thereof;said semirigid waistbelt means attached to said mounting frame inhorizontally spaced locations at opposite sides of said mounting frame;the central portion of said semirigid waistbelt means being locatedbetween the spaced horizontal attachments thereof to said mounting frameand extending outwardly and being rigidly connected to said pressureplate means; said semirigid waistbelt means extending outwardly on eachside from the point of attachment to said mounting frame wherebypressure exerted on said pressure plate means causes said semirigidwaistbelt means to encircle the waist of the user and permit saidflexible end to be connected to said lock means by one hand of the user.3. A one-hand harness backpack comprising: pressure plate means havingan upstanding outwardly projecting elongated shoulder hook portionattached thereto; a semirigid spring steel waistbelt connected to saidpressure plate; said waistbelt and said shoulder attachment connected toa mounting frame for support of the backpack; said waistbelt portionhaving a flexible end attached to one end thereof; and a lock memberattached to the other end of said waistbelt portion, whereby anindividual user may exert pressure on said pressure plate means toeffect the encirclement of the user by the waistbelt portion and themovement of said shoulder attachments to the user and by using one handmay connect said flexible end onto said lock.
 4. A one-hand harness forthe backpack of claim 3 wherein said waist attachment means comprises aflexible belt member; a plurality of spacer elements attached to oneside of said flexible belt member and having means for receiving aresilient member therein; and resilient spring member means mounted insaid spacers, whereby the flexible belt member may be deflected uponapplication of pressure to said resilient spring member.
 5. The one-handharness of claim 4 wherein said flexible belt member has one endattached to said mounting frame; one end of said resilient spring memberrigidly attached to said flexible belt member adjacent one end thereof;and the other end of said resilient spring member attached to saidpressure plate means, whereby pressure on the pressure plate meanscauses linear movement of said resilient spring member with respect tosaid flexible belt member to cause deformation thereof for encirclingthe user.
 6. The one-hand harness of claim 4 wherein said spacerelements include grooves for receiving the resilient spring membertherein to permit linear movement of said resilient spring memberrelative to said flexible belt member to thereby cause deformation ofsaid flexible belt member.